All right, it's been 3 weeks without a posting. Busy, as we finally move back home after 6 months in exile. And sure, there's plenty going on in the world. Which I'll comment on soon, once my 3-week lobotomy has had a chance to settle in. (All hail Vlad and the New USSR and Vlad's orange-quisling U.S. prophet!)
Okay, meanwhile, got time for some humor and fun? There's a LOT of cool links, below!
Let’s start with this clip… Simply one of the best things I have seen, maybe ever! Supporting my view that ‘pre-sapient’ consciousness is very, very common… and breaking through the glass ceiling to our level must be very, very hard.
== Distractions! ==
https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/why-6
https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/law-4
https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/profile
https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/bot
https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/cult-2
Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal - LLM And an exceptionally on-target whimsy cynicism from SMBC…
You'd also likely enjoy XKCD, which is generally even more science oriented. Might as well start here and just keep clicking the one-step-backward button till you tire of the cleverness!
I mentioned Electric Sheep Comix by Patrick Farley. All his serials have such different styles you'd be sure they must have different artists. And all are brilliant!
== And seriously, now ==
Briefly serious and then more lighthearted stuff!
Here’s a tip and a tool worth spreading. The Canadian Women's Foundation has created a hand signal for those who are victims of domestic violence which can be used silently on video calls during the coronavirus crisis to signal for help. But not just for video calls, as illustrated in this earlier video.
And while we’re talking inspiring ways to move ahead… Big star Bruce Springsteen’s Jeep commercial paid homage to the ReUnited States of America… a lovely sentiment! (Calling to mind “malice toward none” from Lincoln’s 2nd inaugural address, one of the top ten speeches of all time.)
It also called to mind - for not a few folks who pinged me - resonance with the “Restored United States” of my novel (and the film) “The Postman.” Which has itself been “restored” or refreshed, edited and updated with TWO new Patrick Farley covers and a new introduction.
(Let me append -- below -- a relevant passage from The Postman, in which -- in the 1980s -- I predicted many of the rationalizations of the would-be lords seeking to re-impose 6000 years of dismal feudalism)
On the other hands, the dumbing-down continues. In 2022, the National Council of Teachers of English declared: “Time to decenter book reading and essay-writing as the pinnacles of English language arts education.” Instead, teachers are urged to focus on "media literacy" and short texts that students feel are "relevant." ??? I am well-versed on the 'newer' language arts and helped invent some. And this leads to the moronic world that Walter Tevis ('The Queen's Gambit') portrayed in his great novel MOCKINGBIRD.
But oh yeah. who reads novels? Or tracks coherent, complex thoughts?
Dig it. This is part of the Great Big War Vs Nerds that's primarily on the Mad Right... but also has long had a strong locus on the postmodernist left.
Books r 2 hard 2 reed and shit ...
…but sure… now back to fun!
== And more spritely and musically now, to cheer you up! ==
And now something completely different. I assert that Gilbert and Sullivan were master musicians. And in each opera they has at least one pas-de-deux... where you take two seemingly completely independent songs, hear them separately, and then lo! They get woven together in beauty & irony. This one combines unhelpful encouragement (!) with courage-despite-terror. You'll see (and hear) what I mean at about 3:30. Play it loud!
This version with the incomparable Linda Rondstadt!
And yes, a few of you (too few!) will deem this familiar from a scene in BRIGHTNESS REEF!
And let’s have another. Here’s one of my utter-favorite songs, by Vangelis. The Jon Anderson version is great. Donna Summer’s is even better!
Less perfect but a fun variation is Chrissie Hynde’s version with Moodswings.
Then there’s this way-fun bit of grunting nonsense by Mike Oldfield, that should be redone by Tenacious D!
Three more faves recommended by my brother, with my thumbs way up.
Johnny Clegg with Nelson Mandela.
Patty Smith, People Have the Power.
Cornershop ‘Free Love.’
======
== And now that promised POSTMAN lagniappe ==
So it had been that way here too. The cliched "last straw" had been this plague of survivalists--particularly those following the high priest of violent anarchy, Nathan Holn.
...
The irony of it was that we had things turned around! The depression was over. People were at work again and cooperating. Except for a few crazies, it looked like a renaissance was coming, for America and the world.
But we forgot how much harm a few crazies could do, in America and in the world.
--… and later in the book… --
“How did he get away with pushing a book like this?”
Gordon shrugged.
“It was called ‘the Big Lie’ technique, Johnny. Just SOUND like you know what you’re talking about—as if you’re citing real facts. Talk very fast. Weave your lies into the shape of a conspiracy theory and repeat your assertions over and over again. Those who want an excuse to hate or blame—those with big but weak egos— will leap at a simple, neat explanation for the way the world is. Those types will never call you on the facts…”
Want more? I'll post another, longer, section of the book, soon. You'll likely not see a better pre-diagnosis of the hell we are in now, verging on possibly much worse. But yes, we will win.
Thrive. And persevere!
1 comment:
Thanks for the comics, but none of the links are working properly- looks like they have some extra stuff at the end that needs removing.
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